I learned on the buddy box and would suggest it to anyone and everyone. I was lucky in that, once I got serious about it, I picked it up very quickly and pretty much had mostly verbal input from my instructors. However, there are a few people at my field that are having a great deal of difficulty learning and on a regular basis lose control. In these cases the buddy box has been the only hope of not running an airplane into the pit area. The other method may be a "better" learning technique but it is certainly not safer.

The bottom line is that, in my opinion, for the safety and piece of mind of everyone else at the field, it's just better to be on the box. Even if you don't end up needing it, it's still great insurance. Why risk killing someone if you don't have to?

Jake